Hitherto, the composition of a developer for developing a negative-working lithographic light-sensitive printing plate differs from the composition of a developer for developing a positive-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plate, and each light-sensitive lithographic printing plate can be suitably developed with each specific developer only.
If each light-sensitive lithographic printing plate could be developed using a developer which is not the specific developer for the light-sensitive lithographic printing plate, a lithographic printing plate having a sufficient performance is not obtained and thus it was substantially impossible to develop well in common a negative-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plate and a positive-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plate with a developer having a same composition.
However, recently, photosensitive resins being used for negative-working and positive-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plates and a developer therefor are improved and a developer which can develop well both the negative-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plate and the positive-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plate with a same composition has been developed as shown below.
That is, examples of the developer which can develop well both negative-working and positive-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plates with a same composition are disclosed, e.g., in JP-A-60-130741, JP-A-237442, JP-A-62-187855, JP-A-63-200154, JP-A-1-270050, JP-A-1-282549, JP-A-157846 (the term "JP-A" as used herein means an "unexamined published Japanese patent application"), U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,913,183 and 3,913,141 and European Patent 279,630.
However, the developers illustrated in the above publications can not always develop in common all sorts of negative-working and positive-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plates and the processing effect of the developers is largely influenced by the characteristics of the negative-working and positive-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plates being processed. In other words, the various characters such as the composition ratios and the polymerization degrees of the binder resins and photosensitive resins (e.g., o-quinoneazido compounds and diazo resins) which are constituting compositions for each of a negative-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plate and a positive-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plate are well-balanced such that both the light-sensitive lithographic printing plates are developed well with a same developer. Hence light-sensitive materials being processed with a developer are restricted.
The developer which can be used for both a negative-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plate and a positive-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plate is an alkaline aqueous solution and thus it is considered that the developer can be used as an activator for a developing agent-containing type silver halide photographic material. In fact, images of a developing agent-containing silver halide photographic material are obtained only in the case of using a developer having pH of at least 13 for developing a positive-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plate or using a developer having high pH for both of negative and positive light-sensitive lithographic printing plates. Moreover, the images obtained are negative images having a very soft tone (low contrast) and such images can not be practically used as plate-making photographic images. As described above, the conventional developers which are used for developing both a negative-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plate and a positive-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plate can not be used as a good activator for a developing agent-containing type silver halide photographic material.
On the other hand, examples of an activator which can provide good negative images by processing a developing agent-containing type silver halide photographic material are disclosed, e.g., in JP-B-56-30848, JP-B-60-12624, JP-B-15264, JP-B-15265, JP-B-60-47578, JP-B-61-48696, JP-B-62-4700, JP-B-62-12498, JP-B-62-12499, JP-B-1-17140 (the term "JP-B" as used herein means an "examined Japanese patent publication"), U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,330,617, 4,385,108, 4,429,036, and 4,447,522.
The activators being used in the foregoing examples are alkaline aqueous solutions having various compositions and in the case of processing developing agent-containing type silver halide photographic materials using these activators, good negative images are obtained. However, in the case of developing a negative-working light-sensitive lithographic light-sensitive plate or a positive-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plate with each of the foregoing activators, an aluminum plate which is the base plate thereof is corroded or the development is inferior, whereby a good printing plate can not be obtained.
As described above, hitherto, the developer which can develop a negative-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plate and/or a positive-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plate can not develop a developing agent-containing type silver halide photographic material and also the activator for developing a developing agent-containing type silver halide photographic material can not develop a negative-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plate and/or a positive-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plate.
However, we previously found a developer capable of solving the foregoing problem, that is, capable of developing well a negative-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plate and a positive-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plate and further a developing agent-containing type silver halide photographic material and have filed as Japanese Patent Application No. 2-306680.
By using the developer, the foregoing three kinds of the light-sensitive materials can be developed well but the use of the foregoing developer is accompanied by the following problems. That is, since alkanolamine is used, a nasty smell is strong which causes a trouble for handling the developer, since a large amount of alkanolamine is required during processing, there is an economical problem, since the negative images obtained have a sufficient quality as line works but have a considerably insufficient quality as dot works, and since the printing impression of the printing plates obtained by the development is as low as about 30,000 prints.
Also, JP-A-1-279245 discloses that a negative-working light-sensitive lithographic printing plate is developed well using a developer containing a compound shown by the following formula (II): ##STR1## wherein R.sub.5 represents a hydrogen atom, a halogen atom, an alkyl group, or an alkoxy group; R.sub.6 represents a hydrogen atom, an alkyl group, or --(CH.sub.2 CR.sub.7 HO).sub.k --H; R.sub.7 represents a hydrogen atom or an alkyl group having 1 or 2 carbon atoms; and j and k each represents an integer of from 1 to 3.
However, in the case of developing a developing agent-containing type silver halide photographic material using the developer, the formation of fog is severe and the contrast is low, thereby good results can not be obtained.